Fungi

News about Fungi, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jul. 22, 2016

Researchers at University of Montana find basidiomycete yeasts are common feature in lichens, though reason remains unclear. MORE

Jun. 27, 2016

Bagdanda Journal; Nepalese Himalayan towns such as Bagdanda have for years depended on harvest and sale of caterpillar fungus, or yarsagumba, parasitic fungus extruded from ghost moth larvae and thought to be aphrodisiac; supply of fungus, which commands high prices in China, Singapore and United States, has dropped sharply, possibly due to combination of overharvesting and climate change. MORE

Jun. 21, 2016

Research published in journal Science explores how naturally occurring organisms in soil such as fungi and bacteria can create disease-resistant environment for growing crops without using pesticides. MORE

May. 31, 2016

Federal scientists are monitoring salamander populations throughout Untied States for signs of Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans fungus, commonly known as Bsal, that has been harming salamander populations in Europe; authorities have imposed temporary ban on 201 species imported for pet trade and have proposed permanent ban. MORE

Jan. 13, 2016

Fish and Wildlife Service is making it illegal to import 201 species of salamanders, or move them across state lines, in effort to prevent spread of deadly fungus infecting native fire salamanders; fungus Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, known as Bsal, has spread in Europe but does not yet appear to have struck the 59 species of salamanders that have already been imported into United States. MORE

Jan. 5, 2016

Study in journal Biology Letters reports researchers on Spanish island of Majorca have eliminated pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis from among several groups of Majorcan midwife toads; disease has been devastating toad populations worldwide; effort shows infections in wild populations can be controlled via simple but sustained effort. MORE

Nov. 15, 2015

NYC Nature column on barometer earthstar, fungus that, uncharacteristically, grows in dry places and can be found around pine barrens of Brooklyn's Floyd Bennett Field. MORE

Nov. 8, 2015

Helen Macdonald On Nature column submits wild mushrooms, which are often outcroppings of vast and ancient fungal networks, have continued power to disturb humans and conjure images of sex and death. MORE

Sep. 1, 2015

Dr Noah Fierer study of house dust published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B finds that types of bacteria in houses varied based on female-to-male ratio of residents and if pets lived there, but notes that indoor fungi grows based on location of home. MORE

Aug. 4, 2015

Scientists warn fungus known as Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans that is killing salamanders across Europe may arrive in North America, where about half of world's salamander species live; experts are calling for curbs on pet salamander trade, which is likely responsible for disease's spread. MORE

Jun. 5, 2015

National Institutes of Health suspends operations at specialized pharmacy at its clinical center in Bethesda, Md; two vials of albumin, fluid used in experimental studies, had been found to contain fungus; patients potentially exposed to fungus are under observation. MORE

Mar. 31, 2015

Dr Ted Schultz study in journal The American Naturalist finds that South American ant species Apterostigma megacephala survives by cultivating fungus, called Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, that grows only in its nests and those of similar leaf-cutter ants. MORE

Nov. 15, 2014

Op-Ed article by Profs Karen R Lips and Joseph R Mendelson III warns that fungus known as Bs, or Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, is threatening salamander populations throughout Europe; says fungus appears to have traveled to Europe from Asia via pet trade; urges halt to importation of nonnative species in order to protect America's native salamanders. MORE

Oct. 5, 2014

Op-Ed article by pediatrician and internist Jonathan Reisman describes becoming interested in mycology and mushroom hunting; compares the hobby to his medical practice, and the many ways in which mushroom hunting is similar to diagnosing and treating illnesses. MORE

Aug. 26, 2014

Photo depicts fungus that compels infected ants to die near their colonies, ensuring access to a steady stream of new victims; research on fungus is published in journal PLoS One. MORE

Aug. 14, 2014

Carl Zimmer Matter column notes research suggesting that microbiome, collection of bacteria and microbes that inhabit human gut, may influence host's behavior, like creating cravings for certain foods, in order to advance its own evolutionary success; theory connects to well-documented examples of parasites controlling their hosts. MORE

May. 22, 2014

Research study in Science Translational Medicine finds that the placenta, once thought sterile, actually harbors world of bacteria that may influence course of pregnancy and help shape an infant's health and the bacterial makeup of its gut; research is part of a broader scientific effort to explore the microbiome, the trillions of microbes--bacteria, viruses and fungi--that colonize the human body. MORE

May. 6, 2014

Plant-choking fungus called coffee rust has swept across Central America, withering trees and slashing coffee production; disease has hurt farmers and sent economic damages rippling through local communities; blight is one of several factors that are pushing up prices in world market. MORE

Apr. 29, 2014

Report in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal attributes outbreak of flesh-eating fungal infection mucormycosis that occurred between August 2008 and July 2009 at Children's Hospital in New Orleans to mishandling of bed linens, towels or gowns; prompts accusations that hospital broke faith with the community by failing to alert the public. MORE

Nov. 26, 2013

Study appearing in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds that grape varieties from various wine-growing regions carry distinctive patterns of fungi and bacteria; discovery could provide scientific underpinning for concept of terroir. MORE

Oct. 11, 2013

A reader asks whether there is any health risk to allowing a toenail fungus to exist untreated over the long term. MORE

Jul. 14, 2013

Two teams of plant breeders and geneticists appear to have arrived independently within reach of goal of creating an American chestnut tree that can withstand the devastating fungus blight that wiped the trees out in the first half of the 20th century. MORE

Apr. 8, 2013

For the 1 in 10 adults who develop toenail fungus, drugs, nail lacquers, lasers or herbal oils may help. MORE

Mar. 29, 2013

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says cases of valley fever in the American Southwest have risen sharply in the past decade for unknown reasons; fever is caused by inhaling fungus that thrives in desert soil and although rarely fatal, results in hospitalization for more than 40 percent of known patients. MORE

Mar. 19, 2013

Prominent Scottish bagpiping school warns pipers around to world to clean their instruments regularly after one of its longtime members nearly dies of lung infection caused by fungi growing inside his bag. MORE

Jan. 1, 2013

Harvard mycologist Dr Anne Pringle studies lichens in New England to determine if fungi actually decline with age; research on aging across organisms asserts that it is a biological imperative, but some scientists suggest that aging may not be inevitable and continue to pursue question of whether immortality may be biologically possible. MORE

Sep. 25, 2012

Nature Conservancy has built an artificial bat cave in Clarksville, Tenn, in hopes of stemming the spread of white nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has been killing bats by the millions; cave, equipped with research cameras to help study bat behavior, can also be cleaned annually, which scientists hope will prevent fungus from growing and slow the spread of the disease. MORE

Aug. 30, 2012

Class-action lawsuit takes aim at five bourbon distilleries in and around Louisville, Ky, where a tenacious black fungus that feeds on ethanol blankets nearby residential properties; suit argues that the fungus is coming from the area's signature bourbon whiskey distilleries that line the city and nearby countryside. MORE

Jul. 31, 2012

Biologists are considering using a fungus referred to as the 'black fingers of death' to curb the spread of cheatgrass, the most invasive plant species in the country; cheatgrass has eliminated large concentrations of native flora in the West and may be contributing to the increased rate of wildfire there. MORE

May. 8, 2012

Study published in journal PLoS One finds that zombie-ant fungus, which invades the brains of carpenter ants and causes them to march to their death, is itself being targeted by a killer itself, a white fungus that devours the parasite along with the dead host body of the ant and stops the spread of the zombie fungus. MORE

Apr. 10, 2012

Scientists report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that the mysterious deaths of millions of bats in the United States and Canada since 2006 were caused by a fungus from Europe. MORE

Nov. 29, 2011

Study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences describes surprising cooperation between specific types of bacterium and fungus; study is co-authored by microbiologist Colin J Ingham. MORE

Oct. 27, 2011

United States Geological Society study finds cold-loving fungus already linked to a disease that has killed more than a million bats in the eastern United States definitively causes the fast-spreading malady; findings are published in journal Nature. MORE